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Extraordinary Exchanges: 60 Home Swaps During One Year in Latin America

Andrés, Ingrid and their three kids, aka El Vuelo de Apis, have embarked on a trip of a lifetime: a year-long family tour around South America. And they’re taking part in 60 home exchanges along the way.

Andrés and Ingrid are teachers from Seville, Spain, parents of three cheerful daughters, and entrepreneurs ready to make the world a better place. They have developed an educational, independent and collaborative project in South America that is also a flexible family trip via HomeExchange.

They won’t just be taking part in regular home exchanges, though.They will be living with the locals in South America for a whole year. In other words, they have made “hospitality exchange” arrangements — meaning they will live with the hosts — in about 60 homes, most of them contacted through HomeExchange.

During the HomeExchange team trip to Cadiz, Spain, this July 2016, we had the pleasure of spending an afternoon with Andrés, Ingrid and their three girls, right before they left for South America. Watch this video to learn more about their project:

“Some of the families might come to Spain later and we’ll be thrilled to welcome them to our home in Seville as a regular exchange or a hospitality exchange. Some others are hosting us without asking for a reciprocal exchange; they simply do it for the fun of helping us and meeting new people,” said Andrés.

Andrés and his family have already had a similar experience. Two years ago, they were hosted by 11 European families, also as part of hospitality exchanges organized through HomeExchange. The experience was so rewarding that they decided to try it again, this time in South America.

“The response has been massively positive,” said Andrés. “We feel like South America is a huge home for us, thanks to HomeExchange. We can’t imagine a more authentic way to travel the world than by meeting its people, living like locals with them, teaching our daughters that the world is full of kind people, and letting the world surprise us through each one of the adventures.”

The main thrust of their adventure is its educational component, the target of which is children, including their three daughters, Nora, Cloe, and Elsa (8, 6, and 4). The family will be making its way through schools, where they will be promoting games, autonomy and sport to children.

Andrés, Ingrid and their girls left in August 2016, and this trip of a lifetime will take them to Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay and Brazil. All in one year.

6 Comments on “Extraordinary Exchanges: 60 Home Swaps During One Year in Latin America”

It’s wonderful to see what you and your family are doing. My wife and I traveled every country in South America back in 1973 and 1974 on two Honda motorcycles only we didn’t have the luxury of Home Exchange to make life easier. I will say however in the year we traveled we stayed with 12 different families that we met along the way. It truly was an experience of a lifetime and we even learn’t to speak spanish. I am presently almost finished building our house in the Kootneys of British Columbia which we will be registering with Home Exchange . We will almost certainly trade with someone in S.A.